October 17, 2007

I got this great book about oils at the local used book store. It's like an encyclopedia and I was very excited to find it. I brought it home and started reading it and realized it was written by someone from a rival essential oil company. That's okay, there is still tons of information for me to learn.

Here's the thing. The rumor is that this other company doesn't sell 100% pure essential oils. They cut their oils with fillers and chemicals to make them cheaper. This is a very common practice with oils. Most of what you buy commercially is cut. That is a bad thing for several reasons. One, you aren't getting what you paid for (the law says you can say it's 100% pure oil even if it isn't)(does that surprise anyone?). Two, the oils are absorbed thru the skin, do you really want to be absorbing chemicals at the same time? Three, how the oils interact with the chemical once it's in your body is indeterminable. But probaby not good.

The company I work for/with has also been accused of cutting their oils. So they send the oils to an independent contractor who tests them to make sure we are getting the real deal. I totally trust the oils from my company. I can smell the chemicals in other oils I've purchased.

October 14, 2007

I was reading a book about oils and it had a whole section on things you can't do with oils. Here is my issue. The company I buy my oils from has the same policies. However, I personally do most of those things. And I use them on my loved ones that way.

For example, the book says never, never ingest the oils. Then it modifies that with a couple of them. I ingest most of my oils when I feel that is the most effective way to accomplish my purpose. Like peppermint. If I start doing that dry coughing, I'm going to pee my pants if I don't get this under control, kind of coughing then I put a drop or two of peppermint oil on the back of my tongue, swallow some water or tea, wait a minute or two, if I'm still hacking I do it again, and my coughing stops. However, if my tummy hurts I rub some peppermint on my tummy.

Which is also a no-no. Evidently you have to dilute it with messenger oil. I will admit that some of the oils get quite warm on the skin, undiluted, but if that happens I put the messenger oil on after and it alleviates the warmth. Certain oils, on certain parts of the body where the skin is thinner, or if my skin is wet, get warm. On the other hand, when I met my guy I started putting the oils on his back. They absorb thru the skin and I usually put them on the bottom of people's feet but it was my new guy. I wanted to give him a back rub and put some oils on at the same time. His back broke out in a rash after a few days or a couple of weeks, I'm not sure how long. I think that's because he was detoxifying, fast, and the toxins were coming out thru his skin.

He said I gave him leprosy. We laugh about it now but I was mortified at the time. Lately I've been putting the oils on his achy shoulder, undiluted, then a warm wet towel, which really heats things up and there has been no negative side effects.

I just think it works better that way.

Here's the don't do it's according to most essential oil info. Don't ingest. Don't put on skin undiluted. Don't use if pregnant. Don't put full strength on children under the age of 10. Don't use the phototoxic oils, like citrus, and then go out in the sun. I think there's more but that's all I can think of now.

I've broken all those rules except the one about pregnant women. Just because I don't know any.

You have to experiment and decide what works for you and your loved ones. The important thing is to start using them. Even if you just smell them or put them in your bath you will see the benefits. Oils are fantastic.

October 11, 2007

I'm writing about Bergamot oil today because we drink Earl Grey tea, a lot, which contains bergamot oil. And when I open the tea packet and smell it, I almost always smile. And I decided to find out why.

Here's what I learned. First off, there aren't very many bergamot trees. They grow on the tip of Italy's boot and because of an airport and a highway there aren't many trees left. And for some reason they don't grow well anywhere else. The oil comes from an inedible green fruit.

Here's the notes I took when I researched it. It relieves fear and calms anxiety. It is good for depression. It balances unstable emotions. It can also be used as a stimulant and a tonic depending on the needs of the patient.

It has been recommended for those who want to quit smoking.

It stimulates and helps to rebuild strength. It helps people regain self-confidence. It uplifts and refreshes the spirit - it evokes joy and warms the heart. Which would be why it makes me smile when I smell it.

It has antiseptic properties and is antibacterial. It can be used for lost appetite, and bladder infections. It has been used for anorexia, mixing equal amounts of bergamot with grapefruit juice as a massage oil. It can be used for eczema and psoriasis, also for cold sores. It also helps heal dry, chapped, and infected skin. Combined with other essential oils (like ylang-ylang) bergamot makes a pleasant, relaxing facial massage.

Culinary secret: 1 to 2 drops of bergamot oil added to the cream in an angel food cake batter is a surprise ingredient.